IPL 2013: Jayawardene hopes Sehwag's fire continues to light the way

The former Sri Lankan captain praised Virender Sehwag for his unbeaten knock of 95 off 57 deliveries against Mumbai Indians.

Written by Press Trust of India

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New Delhi:

Delhi Daredevils captain Mahela Jayawardene was effusive in his praise for Virender Sehwag and hoped that the dashing opener plays a few more innings like his brilliant 95 against Mumbai Indians here today.

"Just like any pro, Viru takes a lot of pride in performing for Delhi Daredevils. He wanted to play a great knock for the fans. I have seen how passionate he was about performing well. There is a lot of fire in his belly and I hope that he continues to do well for us in the next few games," a smiling Jayawardene told reporters at the post-match press conference.

Asked about the decisive 151-run opening stand between him and Sehwag, Jayawardene said, "We complemented each other very well. As it is Viru took a lot of pressure off me and my job was to give him more strike. His batting also allowed me to play freely and I could control the innings.

"We were talking to each other that we should not get carried away with good start. I was disappointed that I could not finish off as Lasith Malinga typically found my toe."

The former Sri Lankan captain said that opening the innings was a tough call that he had to take.

"Losing Kevin (Pietersen) and Jesse (Ryder) prompted me to go down the order as we needed some solidity in the middle. But since our batting unit did not click, it was a call that I had to take. I spoke to David (Warner) about it and told him that I wanted him to play the role that Kevin played last year," he explained.

Delhi's fielding was shoddy today but the skipper defended Umesh Yadav and Shahbaz Nadeem who were the main culprits.

"I believe that both Umesh and Nadeem are good fielders. It's just that you need to concentrate on the current situation rather than thinking about what to bowl in the next over."